﻿Physical Therapy Treatment Utilizing the movement of the horse as a Treatment Stategy

There is something about the outside of the horse that is good for the inside of a man.

Winston Churchill

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WHAT IS HIPPOTHERAPY?

Hippotherapy is a treatment strategy utilized by only licensed therapists. It is a physical, occupational, and speech-language therapy treatment strategy that utilizes equine movement as a part of an integrated intervention program to achieve functional outcomes. In Hippotherapy, the horse influences the client rather than the client controlling the horse. The client is positioned on the horse and actively responds to its rhythm, warm, and movement. Equine movement provides multidimensional movement which is variable, rhythmic, and repetitive. ﻿The licensed therapist directs the movement of the horse; analyzes the client's responses, and adjusts the treatment accordingly.﻿ This treatment strategy may be chosen as can be the most effective treatment strategy to achieve functional goals and outcomes.

WHY HIPPOTHERAPY?

Hippotherapy takes the patient out of the clinical setting into a natural and functional environment

Functional outcomes are acquired more efficiently with decreased patient burnout

﻿WHY A HORSE?

The horse's pelvis moves in the same tri-planar motion at a walk as the normal human pelvis. This movement helps facilitate a normal gait pattern in patients with gait or balance dysfunction. The sensory input from the horse impacts on the patient's vestibular, tactile, and proprioceptive systems to help provide a foundation for development of sensory-motor skills. The results are displayed in a normalization of tone, improved postural alignment, midline orientation, improved head, neck and trunk control, and body awareness. Patients display improvements in motor planning, oral-motor, fine, and gross motor skills as well as improvements in balance, equilibrium, and coordination. Thus leading to improved functional outcomes and achieving therapeutic goals.

Hippotherapy as a treatment strategy is provided by Annie Cardwell, PT HPCS.She is a licensed Physical Therapist. and a board certified Hippotherapy Clinical Specialist.

General Indications for Hippotherapy:

Medical Conditions:

Including but not limited to:

Amputation

Autism Spectrum Disorder

Cerebral Palsy

Developmental Delay

Devopmental Coordination Disorder

Genetic Syndromes

Multiple Sclerosis

Parkinson's Disease

Sensory Integration Disorders

Scoliosis

Stroke

Traumatic Brain Injury

Spinal Cord Injury

Impairments:

Abnormal Muscle Tone

Decreased Mobility

Impaired Balance Responses

Impaired Coordination

Impaired Gait

Impaired Sensorimotor Function

Limbic System Dysfunctions

Postural Asymmetry

Poor Postural Control

Visit the American Hippotherapy Association at www.americanhippotherapyassociation.org for more information on the origin of hippotherapy in Germany in the 1960s and how hippotherapy is used as a treatment strategy in current therapy practice today.